A new website is exciting. But redesigns, platform changes and domain moves, say from .com to .lk, are the most common way businesses lose their Google traffic overnight. The good news: with planning, you can keep almost all of it.
Why migrations lose traffic
- URLs change and old ones return 404 errors
- Content is removed or shortened in the new design
- Titles and meta descriptions are lost
- The new site is blocked by robots.txt or noindex left over from staging
- Internal links point to old URLs
- Tracking breaks, so you don't notice until it's too late
Before launch
1. Crawl the old site
Export a full list of URLs from the current site, plus your top pages by traffic from Google Analytics and by clicks from Search Console. Also export backlink targets, since pages with external links must be redirected.
2. Benchmark
Record current rankings, organic traffic by page, conversions and indexed page count. You'll need these to compare after launch.
3. Map every old URL to a new one
Create a spreadsheet: old URL in one column, new URL in the next. Each old page should redirect to its closest equivalent, not to the homepage.
4. Keep the content that ranks
If a page brings traffic, don't cut it to two lines in the new design. Keep its content, title, headings and internal links, or improve them.
5. Prepare 301 redirects
Use permanent 301 redirects. Avoid chains like A to B to C; each old URL should redirect directly to its final destination.
6. Check the staging site
- Titles, meta descriptions and canonicals on every template
- Structured data
- Mobile layout and speed
- GA4 and conversion tracking
Keep staging password-protected so it isn't indexed.
Launch day
- Remove any noindex tags and robots.txt blocks from the new site.
- Deploy the redirects.
- Test a sample of old URLs, especially top pages, and confirm each 301s to the right new page.
- Submit the new XML sitemap in Search Console. Guide: XML sitemaps.
- For a domain change, use the Change of Address tool in Search Console.
- Update your Google Business Profile website link and important directory listings.
After launch
- Daily for the first week: check Search Console for crawl errors and 404s
- Weekly for two months: compare traffic and rankings with your benchmark
- Fix any missed redirects quickly
- Keep redirects in place for at least a year, ideally permanently
A small temporary dip is normal while Google processes the changes. A sharp, lasting drop means something's wrong.
Domain moves (.com to .lk)
A .lk domain can strengthen your local relevance for Sri Lankan searches. Moving domains needs everything above, plus the Change of Address tool, and keeping the old domain registered and redirecting for the long term.
Get help before you launch
Bringing in SEO before a redesign is far cheaper than fixing lost traffic afterwards. Our SEO audits and migrations service handles URL mapping, redirects and launch monitoring. See also the technical SEO checklist.